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Winter thermal gloves what are the best for value


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I bought a set of Alpinestars Goretex gloves - one of my most proportionately pricey bits of kit to date - and they're CRAP. I mean they're warm and dry, but they've started falling apart within a year... I haven't even worn them that much in that time! :|


Brush guards / knuckle guards / hand guards / etc. are well worth having. My BMW had a whopping great pair of plastic ones, kept the wind off nicely but when it comes to protection were about as much use as a milk carton over each lever. On my Kwak I have set of much nicer Acerbis Rally Pro guards, plastic with an aluminium bar reinforcing them.

20160522_172558.thumb.jpg.6eec37b73b49c8bb477ff41f677f038a.jpg

They can take one hell of a knock, and despite the relatively slim profile they still make a world of difference in terms of wind chill. If you don't want to shell out £65, a company called Polisport do a knock off version - I was gonna get those until I found the legit version at a heavily discounted price. But as Throttled observes, your left hand always gets colder!

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I have mostly been using Goretex lined gloves and heated grips in winter, sometimes combined with handguards.

If you don't keep your hands dry, any form of heating is useless, hence the goretex gloves.

Now as one gets older, unfortunately the blood circulation gets less effective and as a result, your 'inner central heating' will not be able to keep your toes and fingers (and sometimes even your limbs) warm enough on longer winter trips.


I know it is not the cheapest solution, but the last few years before my retirement, I used electrically heated gloves by Gerbing (12 volts),

They are a blessing...

Before I realised that I needed a bit more warmth to be comfortable during winter commuting, I sufferd from ice cold fingers and sometimes even pain.


The Gerbings are connected to the bike battery and that means that you have to install some wiring and a connection point (socket ?).

In your coat you have to have wiring as well, leading from the socket, through both sleeves to each glove.

Depending on the type (and price) of the gloves, you had a small regulater for 2 or one for 3 stages of warmth.

Mine had 3 (simmering, cooking and frying) and though the regulator is quite small, it was no problem to operate them with wintergloves on...

To many people, the whole construction and the idea of being 'connected' to the bike put them off.

But after a short time getting used to it, it became routine to connect and disconnect the wire.

And if you should forget to disconnect before descending (or fall off in a mishap), the connection was of a 'snap easy' type, so it would brake without damageing bike, suit or gloves.


My set cost at the time about € 189,00, by today's rate that would be 165 GBP (No pound sign on my keyboard !!??).

They are not lined with Goretex, but with Hipora by the way, but I could not notice any difference in rainy trips.


One last remark regarding heated grips, I once had cheap after market grips installed later, but they were rubbish.

The official , genuine 'bike brand' grips were always perfect.


Gerb-1.jpg

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Muffs are another good option. I've yet to find a pair of winter gloves that really work when you're out for a while in crap weather. Muffs look a bit gash but they work. Tucano Urbano ones are decent.

 

Ok thanks i will check them out, i am always little bit wary if i buy muffs and there stupidly big.

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Remember ski gloves etc are not stitched to the abrasion force's of sliding along tarmac .


Get some motorcycle based gloves as a minimum

What area you in ...?


Places like helmetcity have a clearance store in Chichester

 

EAST SUSSEX i hate the gloves ive always been one for bike gear, but funds are tight since crimbo the local shop offered a set for £70 spada ones but i found the same ones on ghostbikes £30

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If your gloves arent giving enough protection, a tip i used to use when flying birds in winter was to put on a cheap disposable latex glove underneath the normal glove, its amazing how much warmer you are. i havent tested it out on a bike yet but i cant see it not working.

 

Do not do that. The wind chill will easily penetrate the outer glove and the latex will chill even quicker than fabric and will freeze your fingers.


I tried this once on my bicycle, painful was not even close. Do that at motorbike speeds, :shock: :shock: :shock:


Use silk glove liners instead.

i have a set of silk liners, my ski gloves died finally in the rain the other night :( so i have been using pair of slik linkers and normal gloves and leathers ... my hands after 15 min ride was cold and stiff

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Do you need waterproof or just warm?


Waterproof I would say Gortex every time, if to be used for long journeys I would then say a double cuff (Inner cuff goes stops water running down into glove, outer cuff goes outside and stops water running up your sleeve) a PITa to put on but once on your dry... Not a cheap option but worth it...


Another thought is heated grips, these need not be expensive if you dont mind fitting a relay or can remember to turn them off. I am running on a set of these the last 3 day 450 mile tour and my hands where not cold...

https://www.rydestore.com/ryde-variable-temperaturee-heated-motorcycle-grips.html

 

i am debatting about heated grips Warm hands but i am defiantly going to invest in muffs ;) or mitts :angel12:

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I spent years buying every type of winter glove from £30 to £100s and in the end due to my poor circulation I opted for heated grips (removed when it gets warm) and some mid weight Alpinestars waterproof gloves. When it gets so cold I shouldn't really be riding I put on my merino wool liners. I bought the winter gloves whilst wearing the liners so that I knew they wouldn't be so tight it made the circulation worse. I get grief from "proper bikers" about being a nancy with the heated grips but I'm the one with the toasty hands and not the ones having to use the palm of my hand to brake as I can't feel the lever with my fingers haha.


If you have handle bars rather than clipons then a £15 set of bash guards from eBay work a treat for cutting the wind chill down even further, and like the grips when its gets above 15 degrees take them off :)


I'd say also make sure your core is nice and toasty too as when that gets cold it makes your extremities a million times worse!


So:

£50 on Oxford sports grips (little less chunky than touring ones)

£90 (or less) on some fairly decent waterproof & windproof gloves


Optional:

£10 merino wool liners (if you really suffer from the cold)

£15 bash guards (reduce that wind chill)


Still less than £200+ top end gloves but with all things its horses for courses 8-)

 

at the mo i am riding a Yamaha yzf r125 nothing fancy but its an okay work horse hand guards i looked at a set for £15 but i think people may take the piss a little bit.

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Thank you everyone. i have a rough idea now what to go for, i am doing rough 35-40 miles every couple days traveling to the new unit in Feb i should be starting my new job and doing about 35 miles too new job and 35 miles home so about 70 miles plus w.e i do on my lunch break (exploring) its now like -2-3 in the morning so not the nicest to ride in the morning. some of you poor northerner must be use to it ;)

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Ok thanks i will check them out, i am always little bit wary if i buy muffs and there stupidly big.

 


I have a set of the Tucano Urbano (generally considered the best) neoprene ones and also a set of their bigger fabric ones. I can post pictures of both if you like. So far I've only tried the neoprene ones (which aren't that big) on my 125 and I've found them decent so far. Definitely make a difference. I've just put my ER6 back on the road after it's annual service so I'll be fitting the bigger muffs to that in the next couple of days.


The Gerbings heated gloves are excellent, but pricey. I've never used them on the bike but I used them a couple of times in a microlight (which is significantly colder) and found them excellent. Didn't feel 'warm' but my hands just felt like I was sitting in the house so I didn't sweat and was totally comfortable.

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I understand that the Gerbings are not an option for topic starter, but 2 more remarks maybe interesting for other readers.


1- Even when used without electrical heating, they were full-fledged winter gloves.

(I sometimes needed heating in the morning going to work, but going home in warmer weather I would not bother to plug them in).


2- They can be used with rechargable batteries; in the 'shaft' part of the gloves is a small pocket especially for the battery.

So you don't need to connect them to a vehicle battery. For instance to be used when skiing, cycling, or winter camping even.

Only these additional batteries + charger cost an extra € 100,-; I never bought them...


And about muffs... yeah, when I had to be econimical, being a young father of 2 kiddies, I would have muffs to keep my hands warm on my MZ's at the time.

And when I'm honest, I must admit that I'm not quite sure that the Gerbings are doing a better job than a pair of good muffs...

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As a beekeeper I have a load of cheap washing up gloves lying around. I have found that wearing a pair under my usual gloves works pretty well - long enough for my usual winter distances.


You can get them with quite a high degree of insulation - if they can keep your hands cool when in very hot water they ought to work the other way round as well.


You do get some funny looks if you buy pink ones though :oops:

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I understand that the Gerbings are not an option for topic starter, but 2 more remarks maybe interesting for other readers.


1- Even when used without electrical heating, they were full-fledged winter gloves.

(I sometimes needed heating in the morning going to work, but going home in warmer weather I would not bother to plug them in).


2- They can be used with rechargable batteries; in the 'shaft' part of the gloves is a small pocket especially for the battery.

So you don't need to connect them to a vehicle battery. For instance to be used when skiing, cycling, or winter camping even.

Only these additional batteries + charger cost an extra € 100,-; I never bought them...


And about muffs... yeah, when I had to be econimical, being a young father of 2 kiddies, I would have muffs to keep my hands warm on my MZ's at the time.

And when I'm honest, I must admit that I'm not quite sure that the Gerbings are doing a better job than a pair of good muffs...

 

I very nearly bought a pair of g12s today. But they're not armoured, are they? The xr12s are I believe but they're £150. Which do you have? Do they work at -2 at 70mph for 30 minutes?! They get good reviews on Amazon but...


Ta

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@Geofferz,

I cannot remember which type/model they are, and it's not mentioned on the original packaging (which I kept) either.

It only says 12 volt and hybrid power (so to be used with either bike battery or rechargable battery-pack).

So all I can say is that it does have a regulator with 3 positions (25%, 50% or 100%) and those litlle pockets in the gloves for the batery-packs.


And you are right, they are not armoured.

But I never had armoured gloves, and they do have extra padding on the fingers and the handpalm area.


I would normally use them on postion 2 as long as temps are not minus.

My daily trip to work was about 35 to 40 minutes (one way) on the highway at about 70 to 75 mph.

At a temp of -2 or colder, I would use position 3 and my hands would be warm enough to immediately start writing at work.

Which was not always the case before I had the Gerbings...


So I don't know about hard protection in Gerbings, but I was very happy to have them as wintergloves.

Oh... and they are waterproof.


Regards, O-t.

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Muffs + Oxford hot grips. Only draw back is looks nuts it's winter... Who care?!


I use summer gloves all year round and in minus temps I can easily burn my hands on 100%.


Its the best waterproofing option you'll get too.

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Muffs + Oxford hot grips. Only draw back is looks nuts it's winter... Who care?!.

+1 for this, the greatest of solutions.


£40ish, job done. Not as cheap as empty bread bags in bike boots but still cheaper than most winter gloves.

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I tried a bunch of different muffs on mine and none of them were big enough to accommodate my knuckle guards and huge hands :|

Can anyone recommend a brand that makes particularly large ones? :lol:

Surely you mean normal sized stuff for sensible sized people. Not this tiddly crap for midgets. :-D

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I tried a bunch of different muffs on mine and none of them were big enough to accommodate my knuckle guards and huge hands :|

Can anyone recommend a brand that makes particularly large ones? :lol:

Surely you mean normal sized stuff for sensible sized people. Not this tiddly crap for midgets. :-D

Can I give a post two likes...?

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I tried a bunch of different muffs on mine and none of them were big enough to accommodate my knuckle guards and huge hands :|

Can anyone recommend a brand that makes particularly large ones? :lol:

Surely you mean normal sized stuff for sensible sized people. Not this tiddly crap for midgets. :-D

Can I give a post two likes...?

 

I'll lend you one.


Luckily my commute isn't long enough to really kill my hands. And I don't think guards would fit on my bike :lol:


Tempted by heated gloves but my cash flow has taken a few knocks recently

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I’ve got Spada Enforcers and the Gerbing XR12 Hybrid gloves.


The Spadas are a decent enough glove but I’d consider them to be more of a spring/autumn glove than a proper winter one. They’re good most of the time but they don’t pass the 30 minutes at zero degrees test.


The Gerbings are the mutts nuts for proper winter riding. I went for the full-on kit, not cheap but an absolute “Guaranteed for life” Godsend.


For my half hour commute I use them in battery mode (and recharge every few days). For longer journeys I plug them into the bike.


Brilliant. :D

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Something I've wondered for a while - if you had some sort of heated wrist bands, would they warm the blood enough before it got to your fingers??

I have pondered this when playing with my electric clothing. As even with heated grips I find the palms of my hands warm and the tips of my fingers cold I am guessing not....

I have not found the cheap 5v heated grove liners yet....

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